A Mystery Yet to Be Solved
Further research is needed to determine whether Germany’s celebrated lawn tennis champion Cilly Aussem was a member of the Nazi Party. Given the gravity of Nazi Party membership, I think it’s important to distinguish clearly between what the records establish, what they suggest, and what remains unknown. –Hank Nuwer
A search of the U.S. National Archives database identifies a Nazi Party registration for a person named “Cilly Aussem.” I consulted the records, with a DIE ZEIT search tool, However, the surviving record lacks key identifying information found on many other membership cards. As a result, it cannot at this time be determined whether the registrant was the Wimbledon champion who captured the women’s singles title in 1931.
The records do not reveal why an individual joined the Nazi Party or the extent of any involvement. Nor do I presume to judge the motives of those whose names appear in the files. For most, those reasons died with them.
The available evidence regarding Cilly Aussem herself remains inconclusive.
An authentic signature of Cilly Aussem survives on other documents. A qualified forensic handwriting examiner may one day be able to determine whether it matches the signature appearing on the Nazi Party card attributed to “Cilly Aussem.”
Cilly Aussem was born on January 4, 1909, and died on March 22, 1963. Unlike many other Nazi Party membership cards, the card bearing the name “Cilly Aussem” contains no birth date, making a positive identification impossible from the surviving document alone. One potentially significant detail is that the place designation is “K.” (Köln/Cologne)—the same locality listed on her father’s confirmed Nazi Party membership card. Whether that correspondence identifies the Wimbledon champion or another individual of the same name remains an open question requiring additional research.
However, records do confirm that Cilly Aussem’s father, Kauffmann Johann Joseph “Jean” Aussem, joined the Nazi Party two years after his daughter won Wimbledon. Below is information taken from his Nazi Party card.
I found no Nazi Party record of Ursula Franziska “Helen” Wisbaum, the mother of Cilly Aussem.
Photo One: Actual signature of Cilly Aussem. A forensic handwriting expert might be able to make a judgment on whether the signature in Nazi Party files matches the authentic signature of the German tennis star,
Photos Two, Three, Closeup of name on card in Nazi Party files. Photo Four: The upside down number “0147036” on a “Cilly Aussem’s” Nazi Party card.
Cilly Aussem was born Jan. 4, 1909 and died March 22, 1963. Unlike names in other Nazi Party membership cards, no birthdate is on the document. However, the region/place was marked K. [Köln], the same region on her father’s Nazi Party membership card.
PS Herr Kurt Lindener, the uncle of author Kurt Vonnegut, served as a member of the Hamburg-based German championship tennis committee, according to the Western Mail of Australia of December 15, 1938.